Cortana can now replace Google Assistant on the Home button – Cortana For Android

Microsoft’s digital voice assistant comes out with a new update for Android smartphones. There you can replace the Google Assistant on the Home button.However, the software is in the beta phase.

Many manufacturers of intelligent language assistants are usually limited to their own devices.Amazon has its Alexa, Samsung offers Bixby and Google has the Google Assistant , at least for some devices. Microsoft, on the other hand, leaves it not only with its comparatively few Windows phones – that would probably go backwards. The company also focuses on Android devices and makes Cortana available to Android users with a new Cortana update.

Although this Cortana is still in the beta phase and officially not yet available in all countries, however, they can already use some Android smartphones version 6.0. Until now, the language assistant is only available in English. It also does not master all the skills of the Windows Cortana. But with every update, this is known to change, both on the computer and on the phone.

Of course, Cortana on Android is practical for those who use the language assistant on the Windows PC, but do not own Windows Phone. Just like I did, for example. Since you do not have to store an appointment with two different wizards, because hopefully Cortana works then also system-wide.

With this deployment, Microsoft wants to offer a competing product to the Google Assistant. To install this you have to jump over a quite large hurdle . If the app is available for you, you can set Cortana in the settings as a standard assistant. If desired, she will guide you through the necessary steps.

Afterwards, it can be called up again and again via the home button of the smartphone, which is normally occupied by the Google Assistant. Cortana also takes about the same size on the display. A keyboard input, as with Google’s language assistants, does not support it yet and also the call by voice command is currently not possible. As I said: Beta phase … If you are already interested in Cortana here in Germany, you probably have to download the APK here .

I find this really cool, because I prefer somehow rather with Cortana than with the language assistant of Google. For users of the Galaxy S8 it is especially funny, because they would have three different wizards on the smartphone: By pressing the Home button, Cortana is called, the button on the side of the smartphone is activated Bixby and the prompt “OK, Google “Calls the Google Assistant. Crazy!